The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Yad Vashem Condemn the State Reburial of OUN Leader Andriy Melnyk in Ukraine
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the World Holocaust Remembrance Center Yad Vashem have expressed a strong protest regarding the ceremonial reburial of the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), Andriy Melnyk. The ceremony took place on May 25, 2026, at the National Military Memorial Cemetery near Kyiv, with the participation of the President of Ukraine and other official figures.
In a statement published on the social network X, the Israeli MFA expressed serious concern over the Ukrainian authorities’ decision to pay state honors to a historical figure who collaborated with Nazi Germany. Israeli diplomats emphasized that ignoring historical truth and the memory of millions of victims murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators is unacceptable.
The foreign ministry’s position was categorically supported by Yad Vashem. The Chairman of the memorial, Dani Dayan, noted that honoring the leader of a movement that supported Nazi Germany during the persecution and murder of Jews directly undermines the moral foundations upon which Holocaust remembrance is built.
Historical Context and Ukraine’s Reaction
The remains of Andriy Melnyk and his wife, Sofia Fedak-Melnyk, were transported to Ukraine from Luxembourg, where Melnyk died and was buried in 1964. The transfer of the remains was carried out as part of a government program to create a Pantheon of prominent Ukrainians.
The Ukrainian side reacted sharply to the criticism. The current head of the OUN, Bohdan Chervak, called the Israeli ministry’s statement a “blatant provocation” and accused the department of playing along with Russian propaganda, demanding that the Israeli MFA retract its words and apologize.
